Darks Academy
by Mufasa Lives On
Summary: It was hell - brick, dusty and isolated. The people were slowly becoming twisted, strange events occuring shortly thereafter. And Alex was there. Stuck in the middle.
1. Chapter 1

**Here we go everyone: the semi-promised revised-sort-of version of Military School.**

**Notes:**

**1) This isn't really set anywhere, as in a certain country or area. Just picture an abandoned plain.**

**2) I haven't really taken Snakehead into consideration.**

---

The bus was filthy: the windows were clouded with dust, the seats were coloured with graffiti, the roof a collage of spit balls. It headed out along a dirt road, its wheels skidding along. The driver chewed on a wad of gum, his passengers not saying a word.

The boys in the bus each had their own stories, secrets really. The only reason to be on this road was to hide your past, forget it, or run from it. It was in this sorry excuse for a vehicle that Alex Rider sat, his bag between his knees.

He was located towards the back of the bus, separated from the rest. His was fully aware that aside from him, the driver and two other young men, everyone was handcuffed. Their hands were chained to the headrest in front of them – sour looks upon their faces. Two of these boys were juvenile delinquents, three without people to care for them and five who needed a good kick in the backside. No one on this bus knew another, hence the lack of communication.

The vehicle was coming to its destination fast – but not fast enough for the passengers bearing the sweltering heat. There was no air-conditioning, just a simple, cheap fan attached to the dashboard. Alex had spent most of the journey watching the slowly spreading patch of sweat on the back of the driver's neck and the other passengers sway with the bus. There was not much to look at outside – just one stretch of dirt after another.

If Alex had been sitting next to a hygienically cleaned window, he might have seen the first big brick building appear on his left. He would have seen the corrugated iron roofs and the locked windows. But, alas, he didn't see these features of his new home until he stepped off the bus.

He and the two other unbound boys got of first, there bags on their backs. Dust was unsettled as their feet met the ground and their eyes squinted in the harsh mid-morning sun. The driver who had been overseeing the extraction shoved them into a rough line.

The handcuffed passengers got off one by one, newly unbound. Alex saw their hard faces and cruel glares. He hoped the isolation of this location would make them all equal.

When the last figure got off the bus, Alex closely inspected him – or, _her_, as Alex soon realised. She had been sitting behind him, her hands attached to his headrest. Her mid-length brown hair had been hidden in her hood, which was certainly making the heat worse for her. Her jeans were long and baggy, belted low across her hips. Her black hooded jacket hung over her wrists. She was just as unclean as the rest of them, their faces unwashed and their fingernails black with dirt.

The ten of them watched as the driver heaved himself back into his bus, honking his horn as he did a u-turn and drove away, dirt flying up from the tyres. Three men with cowboy hats walked out of the smallest brick building.

"Welcome to hell, gentlemen," said the first, a smirk on his lips.

"I'm Mister Franks, head of this establishment. This is Walter, our security," he said, pointing to the first man, "and this is Councillor Jacobs," he tilted his head towards the third, shorter man. "Head to the cafeteria for introduction!"

The ten assembled teenagers looked at each other, not daring to move.

"Move it!" Walter shouted.

---

**Author's Note:**

**Am I going good so far? Tell me if any grammar is wrong or if something doesn't add up.**

**The next chapters will be considerably longer, as this is just a prologue.**

**Ta,**

**Mufasa**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much to everybody who reviewed last chapter and who added this story to their alerts. I'm glad that even though it has been a while since I really did anything that you are all still here.**

**Just quick explanations:**

**1) The bus windows are still vaguely transparent. I don't know if any of you have been in really unsanitary public transport before, but you can hardly see a thing out of the windows where I live.**

**2) The bus would be of small-ish size, not mini exactly, but not normal sized.**

**3) This story will NOT be an Alex/OC fic, because I'm sick of them.**

**And...**

**4) This is **_**NOT**_** a completely different story to my other one: 'Military School'. This is just it but a few minor points changed and hopefully better.**

**Does anybody know an easy and quick way to edit chapters that you have already submitted? Thanks.**

**---**

Alex's feet dragged through the brown dirt as he walked through the so-called 'Academy'. The five buildings in the complex were made of rough red brick; the corrugated iron roofs a grey colour. A flimsy wire fence ran around the buildings, no gate where the road met it.

The smallest building was the first they passed. An air-conditioning unit was visible from the outside, teasing the sweating pack in the sun. There were two mid-sized buildings on the right, verandas wrapping around the outside. The fourth and largest building was forming a semi-circle with the other three. It had two sets of double doors and wide windows. This was the cafeteria.

As the dismal crowd made its way through a set of doors, Alex looked to his left. Stretching out to the east was another dirt road. It led to the fifth building in the complex. This building was similar to the others, but it was two-storied and had no windows. Alex could see just one door in or out of it, the only security camera visible sitting above it.

The cafeteria's ceiling-mounted fans were a big relief from the great outdoors. The floor was covered in linoleum and the tables and chairs were made of plastic. A narrow bench top ran along one of the shorter walls, blocking access to a metal kitchen. A single cook was stacking plates into a dishwasher.

Alex sat on a plastic chair, his bag stashed under it. The small silent group created a circle, each face looking in a different direction. But all eyes were on Counsellor Jacobs when he walked in the room. Jacobs was short and nuggetty, thick limbs jutting from his torso. His face was round, balding and kind, a small smile on his face despite the emotions radiating from his company.

"Good day boys and girl. Welcome to Darks Academy," Jacobs said, his voice soft.

"Do we have to learn anything?" asked a worried looking boy on Alex's immediate right. He was wide and couldn't fit on his seat. Alex recognised him as one of the boys not wearing handcuffs. He had sat at the front of the bus, his sweat patch matching the driver's.

"Not much, Bob," Jacobs answered. His eyes lazily flickered over the crowd in front of him. "Ah, Temperance, nice to see you, again. What did you do this time?" Jacobs had smiled at the girl a few seats away from Alex.

"Smashed the windows on my principal's Chevrolet," she said proudly.

Jacobs stopped smiling and cleared his throat. He turned away and addressed the whole group. "Going around in a circle, I would like you all to say your name, your age and any interesting qualities you possess."

"The name's Diesel," said the first boy, standing up. He had a head of shaggy black hair and was much taller than anyone else in the room. A navy blue cap was jammed on his head and a gold chain hung from his neck, disappearing into his plain white tee shirt. "I'm seventeen and when I get out of here, I'm going to join the army."

"Good, Diesel, good. You have goals, and goals are very important for an established life." Alex found it odd that Jacobs was encouraging change when most of the boys in this cafeteria weren't going to make it through school.

"My name is Carter, and I'm sixteen." Carter was short and thick-set with dark brown hair. He looked at everybody as he spoke slowly, studying everyone carefully.

"Rex" was next. He just stood up, said his name and sat back down. Jacobs didn't encourage him to stand back up, but rather brushed the introduction aside. Rex kept his big blue eyes on the floor, staring through him wire-rimmed glasses.

The large boy next to Alex stood up. "I'm Bob, and I'm fifteen." Bob's legs were shaking as he stood. When he went to sit back down, his chair went with him, tipping him sideways. Bob stood up quickly and embarrassed, sat back down. Out of the corner of his eye, Alex saw Diesel snigger. Bob only patted his blonde hair back down and looked at Alex.

"My name's Alex and I turn sixteen in two months," Alex announced coolly. Jacobs nodded and turned his attention to the next boy.

Heck, a thin and gangly boy was next, followed by Danny, an energetic redhead. Nick, a tattooed seventeen-year-old, and Zack, also seventeen, but with a pierced ear, simply said their name and age.

Temperance, the girl, was next. "Hey, my name's Temperance, please don't call me that." She nodded twice to herself before taking her seat.

"Well, then, what are we supposed to call you?" shrugged Diesel. She shrugged back: whatever.

"How about we think about that later? Right now, we are going to assign rooms-"

"Do I get my own?" Temperance/Whatever asked.

"No," Jacobs answered. "You may not like it, but you should have thought about it when you vandalised Mr. Reynolds' car. You're split into two groups. Green Group: Alex, Bob, Danny, Heck and Temperance. Red Group: Carter, Diesel, Nick, Rex and Zack. You're room has your group colour on the door. I don't want any fighting about who sleeps where. I will be in to check on you in a few minutes."

---

The room was roughly rectangular, an indentation on one of the walls where a cupboard was located. The beds were low to the ground, covered with one base sheet and a woollen blanket. The door was painted with peeling green paint and, to Alex's unhappiness, lockable from the outside only. There was a single light in the middle of the ceiling, but no switch to turn it on or off.

Alex, being the last to the room, was stuck with the bed closest to the door. This suited him fine, if there was a fire. He told himself that he would get the cool breeze at night.

As far as he could tell, the next building, where the Red Group was housed, was exactly the same.

Alex, having not bothered to unpack, but rather stash his bag away under his bed, watched the others. Bob, the large boy, was next to Alex and as he lay on his bed, the mattress groaned and sunk almost to the floor. Danny, an energetic blur of red hair, was jumping on his own bed, to the dismay of its hinges.

Heck, a brown-skinned, brown-haired boy a little older than Alex himself was opening the cupboard and peering at its contents. Temperance was cursing under her breath and shooting glares at both the inanimate and animate objects in the room.

Alex found himself wondering how he got here.

---

**Author's Note:**

**Does anyone have a favourite yet?**

**p.s. Thanks for all your reviews! Excellent! Keep the comments on my grammar coming!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Thank you for all the reviews - they just keep coming! – and I'd like to announce that the SAS will be included, so stop wetting your knickers. And another thing. How many people actually read these notes?**

---

He fully blamed it on Alan Blunt. Yes, that man definitely had something to do with Alex's situation. It must have started with him, when he decided Jack was no longer able to keep her visa. He hadn't seen Blunt since his last 'mission', but there was no way that Blunt would have _let_ Jack's visa expire. He would have caused it.

_Then_, Blunt would have influenced the Child Welfare Office to send him to this horrible excuse of an academy. But, Alex hadn't yet thought up a good excuse as to _why_.

"Excuse me," came a voice from beside Alex, interrupting him from his thoughts. "Did you say your name was Alex?"

It was Heck. Heck was thin and tall – but not as tall as Diesel. He was probably one of the more mild-mannered of Alex's roommates (Temperance had anger issues, Bob hardly opened his mouth and Danny couldn't be controlled). He had a tidier appearance, his shoes relatively new, his jeans hole less and his tee shirt hardly crinkled.

"Yes, I did. Alex Rider." Alex extended his hand and shook Heck's.

"My name is Heck Peters, nice to meet you Alex." Heck looked Alex in the eyes as he spoke, his smile pleasant.

"It's nice to see you making friends, boys," Jacobs said from the doorway. "Temperance, why don't you introduce yourself more informally?"

Temperance didn't reply but sprung from her bed and handed Jacobs a sheet of paper. "This is a list of reasons why I shouldn't be here." She turned her back on him and returned to her unpacking.

Heck and Alex stood behind Jacobs and read over his shoulder.

**Reasons Against Being Here**

**1) I don't deserve it**

**2) I'm surrounded by criminals**

**3) I don't have my own room (isn't there a law against that?)**

**4) I don't deserve it**

**5) I've already been here**

**6) I have a little brother to look after**

"Temperance, you are here because you disregarded your warnings and still misbehaved yourself. We warned you this might happen. Only two of the boys here are criminals and they are in the next room. We lock these doors at night, they can't hurt you."

"So I'm locked in a room of people who _can_? Where is the fairness in that?" Temperance asked, shocked.

"Yeah, sir, she has a point. Why are we locked in here? What if there is a fire?" asked Heck.

"I don't want to be looked in no stupid room with _her_?" complained Danny, rolling around his bed.

"And I'm sorry about your little brother, but the judge found him a good home to go to. He needs someone to care for him, and he got it." Jacobs's voice had lowered until he was almost whispering.

"I can care for him! You know I can!"

"I know you tried," sighed Jacobs, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Temperance brushed the hand away and stalked out of the room, pushing past Alex and Heck. She stormed down the stairs of the veranda and onto the dusty road. She sat herself in the shade of the cafeteria, arms folded.

The room was silent. "OK, boys, who's up for a little Shakespeare?" asked Jacobs, the incident apparently already forgotten. "By the end of the day, you must come up with a group Shakespeare-based play around five minutes long. Red Group already claimed Hamlet - you need to get cracking."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! How are we supposed to do that?" asked Heck.

Jacobs looked at him, as if it were the easiest thing they could be doing in their whole lives. "Shakespeare, boys - by six."

---

"Who's Hamlet? Is he dead?" asked Danny, lying down on Alex's bed.

"You don't need to know," answered Alex, ripping his pillow away from Danny's shoes.

"Is Shakespeare an actor?" asked Heck.

Alex looked up from his now-filthy bedspread. He'd assumed Heck knew who Shakespeare was, not only because he seemed educated but because he hadn't immediately asked for help.

"Oy..." whispered Alex.

"He was a famous English play-write and poet from the sixteenth century."

Temperance stood in the doorway, her plain features illuminated by the afternoon sun. Her eyes were red and her skin blotchy.

"You know Shakespeare?" asked Alex, pleading.

"I know _of_ and _about_ his works...he was magnificent, if you're into literature created by insane men," she shrugged.

"He was insane?"

"It's debatable."

For the first time, Alex really looked at Temperance. He had underestimated her, thinking she was just as bad as some of the others. But she had obviously had some education despite her morals and temper.

"So he's dead?" asked Danny.

Alex didn't bother to answer him but instead pushed him off the mattress, reclaiming his bed. They had been given a seemingly impossible task.

It would be a long few hours.

---

Diesel stood on one of the cafeteria's tables, his blue bed sheet tied around his neck like a cape. He had a long stick in his hand, pointed down at Nick, who was lying on the floor.

"Die, brute, die!" yelled Diesel, thrusting the sword into the space above Nick's shoulder. Nick made appropriate 'dying' noises and the rest of the Red Group clapped – "my hero" chirped Zack, a mop on his head, acting as hair.

Once everyone was seated and quietened, Jacobs spoke softly. "It is quite apparent that you have just _murdered_ one of the best plays ever written." No one else seemed to care. He motioned for the Green Group to stand before possibly lowering his standards.

"I disagree!" said Rex, standing up. Rex had not yet proved himself capable of saying anything more than his name. "If you cut out all the bull, then you're left with what we just showed: a man taking revenge." Rex sat back down, surprised at himself and adjusting his glasses on his nose.

Bob attempted to stand up on the table like Diesel had done previously, but was humiliated when his foot got caught and he ended up in a heap on the floor. Alex and Heck heaved him back up amongst the laughter.

They had decided to do Romeo and Juliet, to Temperance's great horror. Heck had dubbed it 'easy' after a quick explanation, and Alex and Bob had to agree.

After a few rushed and simple scenes, Alex, as Paris, was lying dead on the floor, Temperance, as Juliet, was dead next to him and Heck, playing Romeo, was dying respectably on her other side.

"Oh, how terrible!" sung Danny, placing a hand on his head, exaggerating grief.

"We are united in tragedy," announced Bob in a mechanical voice. The two boys shook hands over the three corpses.

"The end," said Danny, bouncing back into his usual self.

Jacobs was overcome with emotion. He looked torn between crying and telling Diesel to shut up. "That was fantastic," he settled on.

---

A dinner of baked beef and roast potatoes came and went quickly. Alex trudged back to his room after a surprisingly good dessert of chocolate mousse. He sat on his bed, overcome with exhaustion.

Any other day, he would have made the trek to the bathrooms to change into his pyjamas, but when Temperance decided she couldn't stand being around the four boys, he chose to take the opportunity.

With everyone in bed half an hour later and the lights off, the mood changed. Alex could hear Danny crying into his blankets. Heck wouldn't stop rolling in his bed. Temperance lay still in her bed, breathing softly. Bob farted.

"Jeez Bob! That was disgusting!" screamed Temperance, throwing her pillow across the room. Heck made gagging noises and ran outside, followed by Alex. Danny went psycho and laughed, running out of the room. Bob just blushed deep crimson.

Outside in the cooler air, the moonlight shining around, Alex glanced over to the east, where the fifth building in Dark's Academy was situated. In the dim light of the moon, Alex could just see a figure standing in the semi-darkness of the doorway.

---

**Author's Note:**

**Sorry for the lateness, but I needed to figure out how I wanted everything to work. I'd start writing again then it wouldn't make much sense.**


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Here we go: the SAS

**Author's Note: Here we go: the SAS!**

**I know I've been a bad girl in the FanFic world, but I've been a good girl in reality, busy with various impossible assignments.**

**Enjoy! **

**Oh, yeah!**

**And the RETURN OF ****HAWK****!**

--

Alex was half awake when the bell sounded from the road outside: it was sharp and loud, causing most to shove their sleepy heads under pillows. If he had been listening, he would have heard cursing from the next room.

"Wakey, wakey, boys," shouted Jacobs over the bell.

Alex sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes. Temperance had somehow managed to find her way to the floor during her sleep. Heck had twisted so much he was a mass of blankets. They all looked half dead.

"What time is it?" someone asked.

"Too early," answered Bob.

Alex dragged himself up and out of bed, him and the rest of the boys waiting for Temperance to leave before they changed into anything they could find.

Outside, the sun was low on the horizon. The ground shimmered in the distance and the shadows of the small group were long. It was cold now, but very soon it would heat up.

"OK, boys," started Jacobs. Temperance shifted next to Danny. "We're going for a run out to the pick-up truck over there and back." He pointed to the west, where there was no evidence of a vehicle anywhere. "Winner gets an extra piece of toast."

"If we have to run to the horizon and back to get an _extra_ piece of toast, I'm worried about how much we're _supposed_ to eat," whispered Bob to Heck.

"Get them running, Jacobs!" came a shout from the shade of the cafeteria. Walter.

--

Alex's feet pounded against the dirt. He could feel the Sun's rays strengthen against his back. A long shadow – Alex's – stretched out in front of him.

Temperance was trying to coax Bob along a few hundred metres behind him. Bob, being quite unfit, was hardly going to make it to the pickup. After a few minutes, Alex could see the truck closer than he though it would be. It was further to the right than they had been pointed, its windows reflecting a harsh beam of light.

Soft footfalls became louder as Temperance caught up to Alex. Both were jogging by now, Diesel and the others in front of them, excluding Carter, who had made it to the truck already and was taking a break. Danny, Heck, Rex and Nick were slowing down out of exhaustion and Zack had sat down a hundred metres from the pickup.

"Bob's dying," Temperance informed Alex.

"Of what?"

"A mix of exhaustion and spoiled childhood."

The two didn't say anything until they got much closer to the pickup. "Who are those three men?" Alex asked.

Temperance squinted. "I dunno – they're not anyone we've met yet. Maybe they're more adults intent on torturing us."

One was short and muscular with squarish shoulders. Another was taller – the other sitting down. Some of the boys who had already arrived at the pickup were standing away from them.

As Alex got closer, he slowed down. There was something awfully familiar about them.

A few meters away from the closest one, Alex swore under his breath and contemplated running the other way.

K-unit.

--

The four of them were clustered around the truck. Two standing against the windows and doors, one in the shade created by the vehicle and one watching carefully.

Eagle, Fox, Snake and Wolf.

Alex's stomach flipped.

_Of course_, Alex said to himself. Not once in the last few years had he had a break – why start enjoying life now! In fact, which genius decided to put him through more pain? They should be rewarded!

"What's the deal with the mafia?" Alex heard Heck ask Nick.

The four SAS men looked very conspicuous with their black singlets and long pants. They were also equipped with dark sunglasses. Alex could still see them, though he was trying to hide behind Temperance, who was waving her arms at Bob, who had given up, his chubby body the only dark blob visible looking in that direction.

Temperance sighed in defeat and leant against the tray of the pickup. Almost immediately, she screamed and jumped back. A dark figure had just emerged from inside. Whatever it was, it scratched what may have been its head and swung its legs over the side before landing softly on the ground.

"Sorry, sweetheart," it grunted, meaning it was human.

Temperance had no chance to reply because at that moment, Wolf raised his voice.

"Is someone gonna help that kid?" He pointed out to Bob, who wasn't moving.

"He'll be fine," laughed Diesel. "As soon as he gets rid his fourth stomach." He and Zack hi-fived.

"Leave him alone," mumbled Danny, fiddling with his hands. Diesel laughed harder.

"At least he _has_ guts," retorted Alex. Diesel stopped laughing at the same moment Heck and Temperance started.

"Knock it off, guys," Wolf ordered. "And someone go help that boy!"

--

**Author's Note: Sorry to cut it short – I'm just about to go into exams. I'll try to finish this chapter in the holidays – I'll let you know.**

**You smart people can figure out who everyone was, right?**

**More really soon. I promise.**


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note:

**Author's Note:**

**This is like the only spare minute(s) I have had all holidays! Now, this is gonna be a tiny bit rushed, so excuse any grammatical errors.**

**--**

**p.s. I love your patience!**

--

Alex rolled Danny off his bed and sat down, the springs creaking underneath him. He had spent the last half hour pointedly looking _away_ from Wolf and the others, but he couldn't be sure if they recognised him. His heart thudded against his chest when he realised that if he got on the wrong side of K-unit, he was in the middle of nowhere – anything could happen.

"Alex?" Temperance sung happily – too happily – from outside the small room his group shared.

"Yeah?" he called back, hoping his voice sounded reasonably under control.

"One of those big commando guys wants to talk to you. You know...the leader one. I'd watch out for my land and my first born if I was you, he looks powerful. The scary type," she said as she walked to her own bed.

"Ah...thanks, Temperance," mumbled Alex.

He made to stand up but he was brought back down again when someone jumped on his back.

"Don't call me that!" hissed the girl in his ear, suddenly furious.

Alex nodded against the wooden floorboards. "OK, but what _should_ I call you? And, get off!"

She rolled off him and he sat back up, rubbing his chin. "Sorry, but I hate my mum for calling me that." Her voice was calmer now.

"And I look like your mother?" asked Alex, a bit surprised at Temperance's sudden mood swing.

Temperance scowled and pushed Alex towards the door. "I hope they kill you!"

Secretly, Alex thought there was a chance of her wish being fulfilled.

--

The dirt was hot under Alex's shoes and the sun on his back even hotter. He dragged his feet along the road in the direction of the administration building. He could see drips of water sliding off the outside of the air conditioner. He briefly wondered what kind of budget Darks Academy was running on.

"Ah, Alex, my dear boy!" Ahead of Alex, Jacobs walked out of the building. "We were wondering where you got to. Did Ms. Barnes find you?"

"Who?" asked Alex in confusion.

"Never mind, never mind," muttered Jacobs, pushing Alex into the doorway. "How are you finding the Academy?" Alex opened his mouth, but thought better of what he was going to say. "That's good!" commented Jacobs anyway.

The administration building was cooled with harsh, dry air that would never be cold enough. The floorboards creaked under Alex's feet and it interrupted the speaking coming from the next room.

Alex internally winced as he was pushed into a slightly larger room, furnished with a small, square table, four plastic chairs resembling the ones in the cafeteria and a hideous floral print above the window. Five thick men were seated around these chairs, looking quite out of place.

The one closest to the door was definitely Wolf, and Alex was relieved when Wolf didn't look up from the magazine he was reading. Eagle was staring intently at Alex, who diverted his eyes to the next man, Snake. Snake had definitely changed, and, looking at him closely, that involved loosing most of his left ear. However, who Alex assumed was Fox, didn't look right. The more Alex looked, the less Fox-like he seemed to be. The last man sitting around the table, _on top of_ the table, rather, was the one who had frightened Temperance before.

"Who's he?" grunted Wolf, looking up from the glossy pages of _Gardening Today_.

Alex froze. This was not the reaction he had expected. A greeting, maybe, a nod, possibly, death, probably... As he looked into Wolf's deep eyes, he _knew_ he was recognised. But, keeping with the 'act', Alex only shrugged.

"This is Alex Rider. He's in charge of Green Group." Jacobs smiled proudly. This was news to Alex.

Wolf grunted and looked back towards the article on soils. Eagle and Snake eyed Alex out of the corners of their eyes as they sipped weak-looking coffee from Styrofoam cups. The Fox look-alike smiled briefly and offered his hand to shake.

Then man previously sitting on the table stood up, making the table rock. "Me name's Hawk. Nice to meet you, Rider." The man named Hawk was much shorter than the rest of the unit, with shoulder length, shaggy, sandy-coloured hair. He bright eyes stood out from his pale face. He shook Alex's hand with both of his own, in a tight grip. As Alex made to pull his hand away, he felt something tickle his palm. Paper.

--

Alex made a quick and hasty exit after that. After shaking hands with Hawk, he had shoved his hand into his pockets, pushing the piece of paper deep down. Jacobs had excused him after forcing him to make small talk then asking for Diesel to come to the room.

On the way to his own bed, Alex stopped by the room Red Group shared, knocking on the door hesitantly and asking Carter to pass the message on. Sitting down on the lumpy mattress, he shoved his hand into his pocket, emerging with a crumbled note with ripped edges.

_Cub_, it read.

_0030. E. Back._

_Canine._

--

**Author's Note: It took a while, I know, but hopefully, this cliff-hanger will keep you going for a while.**

**And I read Holes over the holidays. I realise there are a few similarities. I'll try to avoid letting Alex find hidden treasure.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: This is a Sorry Chapter, because I'm sorry I haven't been a good little author.**

**I'd like to thank oirishgoddess for the enthusiasm. And special mentions to pleiadeswolfe, faiyaryuu, jusmine, gold is power, sheluby94dreamer, SheWeapon1, Illusjon and ****AleksandryaGregonovitch.**

**p.s. Cut down on the complaining, guys! I do care about this story and I will continue to write, but you need to stop making negative comments, please. If you don't like what happens, move on – there is no need to criticise me.**

**Less hassle means more chapters.**

--

Alex read and reread the crumbled piece of paper until his eyes began to hurt.

_Cub_ – that _had_ to be from the original k-unit. No one else had ever called him that. And he was right to think that someone had recognised him. Thinking about it, Alex assumed the unit must have talked about it – how else would this Hawk guy know who he was?

And the rest was sort of a puzzle. Who was Canine? What did the letter and numbers mean? What did the word 'back' have to do with the message?

Quickly, Alex shoved the note into his pocket. Heck had just walked through the door, looking slightly dazed.

"Are you alright?" Alex said at the same time Heck asked the exact question.

Heck chuckled. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just...ah..." He looked to the ground uncomfortably. "Nothing. You?"

"Sure, mate, I'm fine," Alex answered as cheerily as he could. "Did you need anything?"

"Have you seen Rex at all? Jacobs and the rest are looking for him." Heck pointed back over his shoulder where Alex could see a small group of being having a heated argument.

--

"He was there, and then he wasn't!" explained Nick.

"That doesn't happen in real life, you loser," sighed Zack.

"But seriously! He was there, I turned around and back again and he was gone!" protested Nick.

"How long were you looking away?" asked Jacobs.

"I dunno. A few seconds, I suppose."

"He probably fell asleep," muttered Zack.

Unfortunately, Nick heard. He ran at Zack, pushing Jacobs, Bob and temperance aside as he did so. Nick talked Zack to the dirt, punching every bit he could find. Zack retaliated, kicking and scratching.

Walter, who had been standing under the shade of the administration building, let out a roar like a wild animal and charged at the two fighters. Alex wasn't sure what Walter's plan was, but as soon as he started moving, Nick and Zack forgot about harming each other and made a scramble for the safety of their room. However, Temperance, Bob and Jacobs, who had been knocked to the ground earlier, were still lying in the dirt.

Walter walked up to the small pile of bodies, pulling people apart. Jacobs was set on his feet in a reasonable state, Temperance and Bob were just shoved out of the way, nursing various injuries – but Nick and Zack weren't so lucky.

They were grabbed by the back of their shirts and almost pulled off the ground as Walter shook with rage. Behind the dirt, each boy was exhibiting a terrified expression. Walter dragged them away from the small crowd on the road, heading in the direction of the east building in the brick complex. "This will teach you to fight under my watch," Walter snarled.

Many glances were exchanged in silence until Jacobs interrupted. "Back to your rooms. Get ready for an algebra lesson in the cafeteria in five minutes."

--

Alex shuffled into his room, he and Heck supporting Bob between them.

Bob was convinced he had snapped his ankle, but Temperance was unsure. "Can you stand on it?" she asked as he was sat on his bed. Bob sent her a withering look. "Oh, come on, just try it!"

"Does it _look_ like I'm about to stand on it? For heavens sake, Temperance!"

She frowned, turning her back on him. She muttered something under her breath that sounded like 'idiot'.

"I can't believe they were stupid enough to fight in front of Walter. Did you hear him? He sounded like a bloody bull! What do you think's going to happen to them?" wondered Heck.

"Hopefully something they can recover from in the next decade," murmured Alex, thinking of all sorts of torture. "Maybe they'll be bashed up by those SAS blokes."

"How'd you know they were from the SAS?" asked Bob, looking away from his ankle for the first time.

"One of them had a badge on. I recognised it. My uncle is an SAS soldier," lied Alex.

Temperance turned around to face them, a look of concentration on her face. "Does anyone think it's a bit weird, Walter punishing Nick and Zack?"

Bob snorted. "Are you daft? Did you even see what they just did? You even have the grazes to prove it!" He rolled his eyes, diverting his attention back to his injury.

Temperance ran a finger over the graze on her palm. "What I mean to say was: shouldn't Walter be looking for Rex rather than punishing something that can be dealt with later?"

That made Alex stop and think. It _was_ odd. Walter was supposed to be security. He had assumed that meant he was to keep the 'students' in the academy safe. He only appeared occasionally, walking in and out of the administration building and the cafeteria. What exactly was Walter in charge of protecting?

--

The four of them walked towards the cafeteria. Bob, forgetting his injury limited his mobility, stood up to leave just minutes before. This had sent Temperance into a smug state, and she walked ahead of them. Bob, upset that the truth was revealed, sulked just behind her.

"Are you alright?" Alex asked Heck. Heck had been quiet ever since he had come to tel Alex about Rex.

Heck looked around. "Can you keep a secret?" he whispered. Alex nodded. "I have a...theory. I think that those guys, you know, the ones who you think are from the SAS? Well, I think they're here for a reason."

"Really? A reason? How unusual!" replied Alex.

"You know what I mean," Heck hissed. "And keep it quiet. I think something illegal is going on here. I don't think those SAS soldiers are exactly who we think they are. Why else would they be out here? It's not like this is a military base or anything."

Heck was right, thought Alex. Why _were_ k unit here? He hoped the note would explain something, if he ever got around to decoding it.

--

There was a lot of conversation around the tables in the cafeteria. Zack and Nick were not back yet from their 'punishment', Rex was still missing, and everyone had their theories about why the SAS were sitting at a table in the corner.

"Maybe they're gonna teach us maths," suggested Danny.

"Yeah right, a bunch of thugs with guns don't need algebra," Temperance said, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe they are going to teach us karate," suggested Carter, making small jerky movements with his hands and kicking his legs out.

"They don't look much like ninjas," wondered Bob.

Diesel rolled his eyes. "Nah, I think they are going to make a fancy speech. You know, the 'you can do better - join the army and learn discipline, ect.'."

Temperance nodded. "I've heard that one a thousand times before."

Danny, about to launch into a full scale list of all the speeches he had ever heard, was silenced, as was everyone else, when four familiar faces walked into the room.

Rex was first, moving silently between the tables to sit by Diesel. Nick and Zack, their faces as white as sheets, sat down on the table opposite each other. Walter, a small smile on his face nodded to the SAS unit and walked out again. Before anyone could discuss this latest turn pf events, Jacobs stepped out of the kitchen, looking as angry as any of them had ever seen him.

"I'm so disappointed in all of you, especially you, Rex, you had so much potential, you could have been a star," he sighed, his facial features rearranging into an upset expression. Alex didn't think anyone in this room had as much potential as Jacobs was apparently mourning for. "Nick, Zack, you leant your lesson?" They just nodded, seemingly going whiter than ever.

"Sir, is it true that we're going to learn algebra?" asked Diesel, swinging back in his chair.

--

**Author's Note: I'm going to end it there, so the next chapter is all together. I hope you've enjoyed and that I can update pretty soon.**

**Best wishes,**

**xx**


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Sorry, again, for the wait

**Author's Note: Sorry, again, for the wait. Hope you like this chapter.**

--

The cafeteria of Dark's Academy was a strange sight to behold before dinnertime that day. Inside, children were spread out amongst the chairs and tables, holding unsharpened pencils and squinting in the bright neon lighting. Sheets were in front of them, holding only a small number of sums and equations, yet taking longer than perhaps common to be completed.

Alex, who had previously been behind during school, was already finished. Rex, Hunt, Bob and Nick were also finished. Alex could only tell that Nick was finished, because he wasn't writing. He was still looking at his sheet with the same concentration. Zack seemed to be an echo of him. Alex could see Diesel and Carter eyeing Nick and Zack, with something along the lines of worry on their faces.

Alex wasn't sure if he was surprised to see Temperance struggling with her sheet. She held the pencil over the page, a look of pure hopelessness on her face. She would frown every now and again and furiously scribble out her previous answer.

"Oi, you need help?" asked Bob. Temperance looked away from her work to sneer up at him.

"No," she grunted, turning back. Bob glanced at Heck, a crushed look hardly hidden. Heck just shrugged.

"Jacobs, sir? Can I go get a drink from the tap?" asked Alex, jabbing his thumb in the direction of the kitchen. He had been watching the cook in the kitchen for a while as she walked between the stove and an area not visible from his seat. He tried to look as innocent as possible, though he really planned to do a bit of sneaking around.

Jacobs looked between Alex and the kitchen. "Be quick," he ordered, his eyes narrowing.

--

The kitchen was quite small, with shiny silver appliances and cheap linoleum. The pots and pans were hanging from a row of hooks above the sink. A simmering pot of what closely resembled cat vomit was perched upon the stove, sending a strange smell out across the room. The cook was digging through a brown paper bag of ingredients on a far bench, swearing loudly as she did so.

She turned around with a tin of baked beans, jumping when she caught sight of Alex. She was small and thin, with wispy brown hair and pink cheeks. She wore a white apron over her summer dress.

"What do you want?" she barked.

"I was just going to get a drink," Alex replied quietly, though drinking wasn't his intention.

"Oh, well then. Glasses are above the microwave." She turned back around to her saucepan, pouring the baked beans into the sticky mess. Alex vowed not to eat dinner that night.

Reaching for a small glass, something struck Alex. Everything in the kitchen was shiny and new, almost unused. It didn't match the old foundations that held it. In fact, everything seemed quite new. The plastic chairs and tables, the bed sheets, the lighting – it was as if there had been a mass replacement for the new arrivals.

Or as if this Academy was used for something else before Alex had come.

--

The rest of the day passed quickly as Alex was thinking non-stop about where he actually was. His creative imagination took him from a boarding school for the underprivileged to everything loosely related to aliens, bombs, counterfeiting, the illegal drug trade and advantaging the criminals of the world. He debated fiercely about whether to involve anyone else more than anything.

Temperance would laugh and never let Alex forget he had mentioned it. She wouldn't think anything of the strange academy until something happened directly to her. She would be one of the worst people to ask.

Bob would most likely faint. He would take everything much too seriously - take it all out of proportion. Alex would have inspired a panic attack that had been swelling for a long time.

But Heck would listen, wouldn't he? Alex was sure he would consider it from all angles, analysing every detail. Though Heck might listen, what would he do then? He was just as likely to discuss it with Jacobs, an insider, than to take the actions Alex wanted to.

No, Alex was on his own for this one. No MI6 to trust - not that he would if they were trying to help. No one to rely on. No parent or friend to talk to.

Right?

K unit would never believe him, a kid who was in the middle of nowhere instead of at home with a respectable family. They would laugh, just like Temperance. But what about that note? It was completely unlikely that the SAS men just wanted to catch up – they had never really been on friendly terms. There was something going on there.

Alex was so involved in his deep thinking that he ran right into Temperance as she queued up for dinner.

"Sorry," he mumbled, stepping back.

"Are you alright?" Temperance asked in hushed tones. She didn't just roll her eyes and turn around like Alex assumed she would have done. She looked directly at him, a frown creasing her forehead. "Are you feeling OK?"

Something clicked in Alex's mind. He remembered the argument Temperance and Jacobs had had earlier, the one about Temperance's brother. Temperance would do anything to get back to him, even if it involved listening to Alex's crazy ideas.

"I...uh..." _Should I tell her? Should I not? Should I tell her?_

Before Alex could decide, Temperance was at the start of the line, getting ready to serve herself a helping of the disgusting slosh that the cook had prepared earlier. Walter was looking over at them, cold as ever. Alex dared not open his mouth now.

The food had a strange pungent odour, and what Alex thought was meat, definitely wasn't. Odd orange bits were spread throughout his serve, contrasting with the bright green peas. Sitting down at his table, Alex found he wasn't the only one to object to this night's meal.

"I think I'm going to be sick!" whispered Bob. His face had become an unusual shade of greenish white and he seemed to have shrunk in size.

Danny pointed to the bowl in front of Bob and with a smile added, "I think you already did!" This set Bob off and he ran outside, his large frame shaking.

On the other table, Diesel had swung back on his chair. "Look at fat boy run!" he laughed as Carter whooped. Heck threw them a scathing look while Temperance threw them a fork.

"Should someone go after him?" Heck asked, worried.

"Psht. Not me. No way am I gonna watch Bob vomit up something I've been served for dinner. It wouldn't even look digested. We could put it on a plate and no one would realise." She glanced at the other table, an evil idea forming in her head.

Alex pushed his plate away from his face. "I think I'll just eat a big breakfast," he said. Everyone's appetite had disappeared, strangely enough. Now the food was just the subject of many overused jokes and taunts.

The night's meal ended with Temperance tipping her bowl over Diesel's head shortly after he insulted her. Diesel, vowing to pay her back, sulked off to the showers. She got many pats on the back by Danny and Carter, who now looked upon her in a new light.

Bob was still spewing his guts out behind the cafeteria when Walter told them all to rack off. The sound echoed off the walls, giving a sickly vibe to all.

"Lights out at 2200 hours!" screamed Walter.

"C'mon, let's go," Temperance whispered to Alex, pushing him lightly on the back. Alex wouldn't budge. "Alex! Let's go!" She gripped his elbow, dragging him back to their room. Alex moved slowly, taking his time.

"Are you alright? You've been acting strange all day," said Temperance. She took the liberty of pushing Danny off Alex's bed for him. Alex sat down heavily on his pillow.

"Yeah, I haven't been feeling a hundred percent. And Bob chucking up his dinner didn't help," Alex lied. "I think I'm just going to take a walk outside for a minute," he added for effect.

Alex stood up and hastily left the room, leaving Temperance staring after him.

--

Outside, with the cool air to help him think, Alex shoved his hand into his pocket, bring out the note that Hawk had handed him during a meeting earlier.

_Cub_.

_0030. E. Back._

_Canine._

Alex had a sneaking suspicion that the 0030 was the time. When Walter had shouted that they were to turn out the lights at 2200 hours, it had given him the vital clue.

Looking at the note further, he made connections which were just as important.

If _Cub_ was him, then _Canine_ was Wolf. It made sense to him now. It would be stupid to use a name that was distinguishable, just in case Jacobs, Walter or Mister Franks found it. And if anyone had asked Wolf for a name...

But the _E_ made Alex draw blanks. E could be anything. It could be an initial, another code, it could stand for hundreds of words, an order, anything.

Thinking back to his training with the SAS men, Alex tried to remember anything that involved the letter E. He knew it stood for certain words when used in conjunction with other letters, but, on its own, it was hardly self evident.

Looking towards the east building, Alex sighed. But something clicked.

East!

E would stand for that direction.

Smiling, Alex looked back towards the note. Something to his left caught his eye on the way. It was big, dark, and possibly a little scary.

"Hello, Cub. We need to talk."

--

**I'm going to leave it there for the time being. Enjoy.**

**p.s. this took up 5 pages of my word programme, so I hope it is enough to sedate your thirst.**


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, and sorry.

Forgive me?

---

**Chapter 8**

---

Alex blinked and winced against the harsh light. Someone grumbled apologetically and faced the torch away from his face.

'What's going on?' demanded Alex, looking around the tent. Recently, in the last few minutes, he had been admiring the cool night air, decoding secret messages and feeling slightly safe. Now he didn't know what was happening. The SAS soldiers were cramped into a thick, dark tent just behind the cafeteria. It was made to encompass the car they had come in to create a solid wall.

'Keep your voice down!' someone to his right hissed. It was Snake. Alex tried not to stare at his deformed left ear.

'Just shut up and listen,' said Wolf, calmly. He sat himself down in front of Alex, who had been pushed to the ground by Hawk, and pulled out a folder of papers. 'Take a look at that while I speak.'

Alex opened the manila folder to find files on himself and the others at the 'Academy'.

---

**Diesel, Desmond. 17, M.**

Clearance: LC

Family: father, mother, step-father (deceased), step-mother, de facto father, brother, brother, sister

Guardianship: father (Diesel, Geoffrey)

Health: acceptable

Notes: Criminal record unsatisfactory. May pose risk.

---

**Mathers, Carter Matthew Andrew. 16, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother, sister, sister

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: acceptable

---

**Jones, Zachary Daniel (IV). 17, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother (deceased)

Guardianship: father (Jones, Zachary, III)

Health: acceptable

---

**Smith, Nicolas. 17, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother, sister

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: up to standard

---

**Ricci, Giuseppe ("Rex"). 14, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother, half-sister

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: acceptable

---

**Montgomery, Heathcote ("Heck"). 16, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother, brother, brother

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: acceptable

---

**Forester, Daniel Maxwell. 14, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother, sister, sister, sister

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: up to standard

Notes: presents symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder (see extensive files)

---

**Gumpy, Robert Sean. 15, M.**

Clearance: C

Family: father, mother

Guardianship: shared parental

Health: unsatisfactory (see extensive files)

Notes: Current status of obesity (see extensive files). Mobility limited.

---

**Barnes, Temperance. 16, F.**

Clearance: LC

Family: father (deceased), mother (deceased), step-father, sister, sister, brother, brother, brother, brother

Guardianship: ward of the state

Health: acceptable

Notes: Criminal record unsatisfactory. May pose risk. Current family situation unsatisfactory – removed from care of previous guardian (Kline, Preston). History of public nuisance. (see extensive files)

---

Alex looked up at Wolf. 'Pardon?'

'I said: we need your help.' Wolf looked at Alex with a painful expression, as if asking for his help was the last thing he had ever wanted to do.

'Forget it.' Alex tossed aside the files and folded his arms, stared intently up at the big man.

Alex had sworn an oath long ago to keep out of this 'spy' business. He was being used time after time, and he was sick of it. They weren't graceful or appreciative and kept expecting him to come at their call. It made him angry, mad. He felt like rubbish at the thought of helping MI6.

'Look,' Wolf said, lowering himself to Alex's level. 'I know you hate what MI6 did to you – Hell, it even makes me sick. But we aren't going to use you and toss you aside like trash. We will help you to get out of here, if that's what you want. If you wanna stay here, we'll let you. We just want your help.'

Alex didn't budge.

'You'll hardly have to do anything. We just want you to do a few small things for us. We're just here on a routine basis. _You_ are the one who can ask the questions we need answered. And no one will have to know, if you don't want them to...' Wolf was fishing for things to say to tempt Alex. 'Not even MI6.'

That made Alex look up. 'What do you mean?'

Wolf looked pleased. 'Cub, we aren't here because of MI6. In fact, MI6 doesn't even want us to be here.'

Alex contemplated it for a moment, made up his mind. 'No way. Absolutely not. That just proves it's dangerous.'

In the background, Hawk snorted. 'Danger? You wanna know what _real_ danger is?'

'Oi, Hawk – shut it!' barked Wolf, whipping around to face the younger man.

'All we need you to do is ask a few people a few questions. That's all. Maybe do a bit of poking around on the side. And if you feel like you're in danger, just get out of there.' Wolf's eyes were wide, begging.

'Keep talking...' prompted Alex. He wasn't thinking about helping them, he was just curious.

'The girl, Barnes, she's been here before. We want to know what's changed since she's been here.' Alex thought of Temperance and how Jacobs had recognised her.

Eagle jumped in before Wolf could continue. 'Thing is...something's going down around here, and we think it might be something we wanna know about. If we are wrong, no worries. We just get our sorry arses out of here. But if we're right, and there is something going on, we don't want _them_ to know that _we_ know.' He pointed in the general direction of the campsite.

'And that's where you come in,' commented the man that looked like Fox but at the same time didn't.

'What makes you think there is something going on?' asked Alex, more curious than before. There were strange things going on, he knew that much. However, he wanted to know what the SAS thought they knew.

Wolf looked around at the others, looked awkward. 'We can't tell you that. You don't have the right clearance.' Alex thought back to the files he had just read. His clearance had been labelled MKO.

'What does MKO stand for?' asked Alex.

'Must Know Only,' sighed Wolf, rubbing the back of his head with his hand. 'Look, Cub, if I could tell you I would.'

'Must Know Only...' Alex repeated the words. 'And if I need to know...?' Alex thought he deserved to know what they were going on, what he might be risking his life for.

Hawk laughed. 'Look, kid, we showed you those files, is that not enough?'

Alex scoffed. 'I know that Danny is crazy for a reason, I know that 'Rex' isn't Rex's real name...but that isn't going to help me at all unless I'm randomly quizzed on the family members of Diesel to save my life.' Alex made to get up.

'Can't you just think about it?' pleaded Wolf, following him.

'Yeah...sure...' muttered Alex, struggling to find the tent's exit.

'We'll see you in the morning, Cub,' waved the guy that looked like Fox but maybe wasn't.

---

Alex went to bed with so much on his mind he didn't sleep for hours.

And the one thing that ran through his mind the most was his own file, the file that had struck him the most:

**Rider, Alex. 15, M.**

Clearance: MKO

Family: father (deceased), mother (deceased)

Guardianship: MI6 control

Health: (see extensive files)

Notes: Presently located at suspicious location. Previous ally. (see extensive files) May be trusted if caution used.

---

Satisfied?


	9. Chapter 9

**Don't kill me.**

**----**

**Chapter 9**

--

A rough hand pushed Alex's face into the pillow until he couldn't breathe.

'Get of Alex, Danny,' scolded Temperance from somewhere nearby.

Alex's head was released and he spun around, tangling himself in his sheets. Danny was standing above Alex, holding out a plate of burnt toast.

'I told Jacobs you were sick, so you can stay in bed all day if you want,' Temperance explained, taking the toast from Danny and putting it on Alex's pillow. 'Wow, you're almost as bad as Heck.' She pointed to where the sheets had twisted around Alex's ankles.

Danny pranced out of the room and Temperance went to make her bed. Alex stared after her. Usually, she was very cold and spiteful. And then, every now and again, like right now, she would warm up and be kind. It was as if her mood swings were on steroids.

'Why?' asked Alex, looking down at his breakfast. It was light outside, definitely too late for him to be sleeping.

Temperance turned around. 'Excuse me?' she frowned.

'Why are you being so nice to me?' Alex pulled his legs out from the bed sheets and managed to look up at her.

Temperance looked down at her sheets and kept making her bed. 'You don't know much about me, do you?' It was meant to be a rhetorical question, but Alex knew that if it wasn't, he would truthfully be able to answer 'more than you know'.

Alex shook his head, 'No, not really.'

Temperance didn't say another word, so Alex ate his toast in silence and went back to sleep.

----

Alex woke up to the sound of Temperance cursing. Loudly.

The sun was still high in the sky and Alex didn't feel any less tired than he had before, so he could only assume he hadn't been asleep for long. He rolled over and rubbed his eyes to get the sleep out. He locked eyes with Heck, who was reading, across the room. Heck rolled his eyes and shrugged, jerking his head towards the room.

Pulling himself out of bed, Alex searched for Temperance. He was sure he had heard her swearing only a few seconds ago. As Alex began to question his sanity, Temperance's head popped up through the window.

'Christ,' she hissed.

'No,' replied Alex. 'But I hear the resemblance is stunning.'

Temperance stuck a particularly rude finger up at him. 'Who threw my bag out the window?' she demanded. Heck and Alex shook their heads. 'C'mon, it had to be someone. Fess up!'

She grabbed onto the window sill and pulled herself up, almost smashing her head on the frame. Declining the hand Heck offered her, she slipped to the floor and began crawling around the room, sliding on her stomach.

Heck pulled his feet off the floor as Temperance reached under his bed. 'Are you quite right?' he asked, peering down at her ankles.

'Someone has stolen my stash of chocolate and I want them to pay for it,' she replied, muffled by the mattress.

Danny bounced in. 'Chocolate? Did you say you have more chocolate?' He glanced around the room, an innocent look on his face. Temperance pushed herself backwards and off the floor. Alex made to reach for her, sensing a violent outbreak, but she only smiled sweetly at him.

'Why? Have you seen it?'

Danny nodded, 'Yeah, it was yum,' then his eyes went wide. He saw his mistake too late.

Heck and Alex reached for Temperance but only crashed into each other as she flew at Danny. Danny, even though he had long legs, was no match for Temperance, as the boys were starting to realise very quickly.

'You idiot!' she screamed, pushing him onto Alex's bed. 'You moron!' she cried, grabbing Alex's pillow and thrashing Danny with it. 'Why on earth would you do that, you freak!'

Danny curled up into a ball and started screaming and shouting as loudly as Temperance. Heck and Alex tried to grab the pillow off Temperance, push her back and protect Danny all at once but it failed. Danny tried to squirm away from his attacker but she was freakishly strong and had a good grip on his collar.

'Temperance!' Heck shouted, grabbing at the pillow. Danny's leg shot out at that moment and struck him hard in the crotch. Heck doubled over and took a huge step backwards, out of danger.

Alex had given up by then, deciding that Danny was resilient and would probably bounce back from this abuse but if he didn't it would give Temperance some peace of mind for a while.

'What's going on here?' came a bark from the doorway. Hawk stood at the door, his bright eyes taking in the scene. His face twisted into a strange expression and Alex thought for a moment that he was going to throw them all out the window like someone had thrown Temperance's bag. But then he let out a gruff laugh and clapped his hands together.

'Beaten up by a girl,' he chuckled, pointing at Danny. Hawk opened his mouth to say something else, but the pillow that had previously been walloping Danny collided with his face. It seemed that Hawk was not used to being assaulted by females because his smile disappeared and he aimed the pillow, about to fling it back.

'Hawk!' growled Wolf, silently appearing in the doorway. Hawk placed the pillow neatly on Alex's bed, which had been deserted. Temperance stood, glaring daggers near the window and Danny stood, shaking behind Heck, who had recovered. Alex stood in the middle of the room, still half asleep.

'All of you, cafeteria, now.' Wolf's expression was so serious that everyone trooped out without a complaint. As Alex reached the door and sped up to get past Wolf, he flung a hand out.

'No, not you, Cub. We need to talk.'

---------

By the way, for those who might want to know, the 'clearance' levels in last chapter were as follows:

C - Citizen's clearance (basically no clearance, only the abridged version of classified events if necessary)

LC - Low clearance (less than citizen's, for those who might be a risk)

MKO - Must know only (Alex's level of clearance - highest of the three, can handle basic sensitive files, lowest level for spies)


	10. Chapter 10

---

Alex stared up at Wolf and wondered briefly how he seemed to take up the whole room. Hawk sat next to Alex on his bed, his feet swinging and scraping the floor every now and again.

'So...', grunted Hawk. Wolf shot him a disapproving look as his heavy boots scraped loudly against the timber floor.

'So what?' Alex replied. He stood and walked around the room. For some reason, he felt particularly uncomfortable sitting when Wolf was standing. It was as if he had a compulsive need to feel equal with the big man, as if he needed to demand respect.

'Are you in or are you out?' Hawk asked simply. Alex thought he would have liked Hawk had they not met under such pressured circumstances. Hawk was to the point when it came to important things but wasn't as tight as the rest of k-unit. He had an easy air about him.

Alex bit his lip. 'Neither.'

Wolf turned around, his gaze following Alex as he paced. 'What does _that_ mean?' He didn't look angry, he didn't look hopeful, just curious. There was something about that that helped Alex make up his mind.

'It means I'm not going to put myself in danger but I'm not going to sit on my backside and let whatever happens happen. I've been curious about this place for a while.' Alex stopped, licked his lips and sucked in the dry air.

'Go on,' prompted Wolf, thoughtful.

'The girl, Temperance, has been here before. She's mentioned a few times that it's different and I believe her. The beds, the chairs, the lights – they're all new. Now, I don't know much about this place, but I know that if I ran this joint and I got extra funding from somewhere, I wouldn't spend it on new taps. The kitchen is all new, the cook can't cook and we're eating off brand new plates.

'Our doors lock from the outside, there's a video camera on a building that hasn't even been used yet and Walter, the security man, carries a gun when he could probably overpower us. Don't even get me started on how weird Nick and Zack have been acting. This place is suspicious. No doubt about that.'

Hawk and Wolf were silent. 'Why haven't we picked up on most of that?' asked Hawk, mostly to himself, shocked.

Wolf shook his head. 'We've noticed most of that, just haven't put two and two together like Cub has. I'm gonna talk to the boys, tighten this operation. It's hardly going to plan.'

Hawk made to speak but the stairs creaked, causing him to spring to his feet.

'Alex?' called Heck. He came into the room as Wolf and Hawk quickly left. 'What was that about?' he asked in a lowered voice, looking after the two men.

'Never mind. What do they want us in the cafeteria for?' Alex hastily said.

Heck raised his eyebrows at the non-crafty change of topic but went along with it. 'Some sort of group activity. I think it's going to be trust exercises or something. I came to find you before I got paired with Bob. I would have gone with Temperance but she's in a bad mood.'

Alex rolled his eyes as he reached the door. 'Isn't she always?'

'Hey! I heard that.' Alex and Heck straightened up as Temperance peeled away from the shadows of the cafeteria wall. Heck moved back quickly, in shock. Alex just kept his head down and entered the cafeteria where there were witnesses.


	11. Chapter 11

The cafeteria offered little relief from the heat outside. Today was the hottest day Alex had experienced at this 'Academy'. The sun aimed to bake them and the shade gave false expectations.

The plastic chairs were gathered into a tight circle. Alex climbed into his from the outside of the ring, sitting next to Diesel. Temperance and Heck shuffled into the two spots left; she offering a rare smile and him looking pleased about something. Alex subtly tried to get Heck's attention, but it almost seemed as if Heck was avoiding his eye.

Alex looked curiously about the circle. The teenagers seemed to take up less room than usual and there was a tense silence. Alex saw the reason standing near the kitchen.

Franks, the true 'leader' was frowning heavily. He was clean-shaven and he was wearing a suit despite the heat. Franks was a rare sight around the camp. Alex assumed he was always in the 'office' but he also doubted that Franks would go to all the trouble of dressing up if he only risked being seen by delinquent adolescents.

Taking a closer look around the small group Alex noticed two absences – Nick and Zack were not among them. No chairs had been put out for them, either. The lack of the two big boys diminished the already small assembly.

Jacobs appeared then, hastily walking towards Franks with a piece of paper clutched in his hands. They put their heads together, Jacobs doing most of the talking, Franks nodding, grunting or shaking his head occasionally. The boys took the chance to fill the silence with chatter.

To Alex's surprise, Diesel moved his chair slightly closer to his and addressed him directly. 'Alex.' His voice was low and he didn't turn his head in Alex's direction. He kept his gaze focused near Franks and Jacobs.

'Diesel,' replied Alex, who'd become more and more aware of strange behaviour since his talks with Wolf and the rest of K-unit.

'Look, you may have noticed that Nick and Zack are missing. And no doubt you noticed how twisted they were yesterday. Carter has a theory, but it's pretty out there. I want to know if you've seen anything strange lately.' When Diesel spoke, he did so without moving his lips much. Alex couldn't be sure if it was because he didn't want anyone knowing what he was saying or if he always spoke that way.

Alex looked towards Franks and Jacobs the same moment they both looked at him. Jacobs looked away quickly but Franks' stare lingered and he grimaced slightly. Alex looked down after a while, his heart beat starting to pick up. 'I've seen a bit. We can't talk about it here.'

Diesel nodded solemnly, which gave Alex a strange urge to laugh, or cry, he didn't know which. 'After this, during free time. I'll come get you.'

As Diesel shuffled his chair back towards Rex, Alex wondered – crazily – if he had found someone he could confide in about what was happening.

----


	12. Chapter 12

'Trust exercises,' continued Jacobs, louder to drown out the muttered complaints, 'require many things to be successful. Now, let's brainstorm!'

Jacobs was the only grown man Alex had ever encountered who was visibly excited by whiteboards and markers. He'd proudly wheeled the board out of a corner and had lined up the markers carefully along the thin shelf. Writing his name in the corner as if they didn't know who he was, he'd alternated between colours. He did this quite happily until Carter accused him of being a twelve year old girl.

Jacobs took his time choosing the blue marker and wrote in block letters 'TRUST' in the middle of the board, bordering it with red squiggles. He turned around to a few concerned faces. 'What do you need for trust exercises to be successful?' he asked the room.

Everyone was quiet. In a matter of seconds, hundreds of glances had been exchanged throughout the circle. Danny eventually put his hand up when he realised everyone was looking at him, simultaneously pressuring him with their eyes in an unspoken alliance. 'Trust?' he ventured, his voice reaching a previously unheard pitch.

Alex wasn't the only one who had to bite his knuckles in an attempt to stifle his laughter. Jacobs looked around, his calm composure not even wavering. 'Excellent!' he decided, scribbling it on the board with a purple marker. 'Anyone else?' he asked hopefully, after determinedly underlining it twice. The teenagers remained uncooperative and made no move to hide it.

'Well,' Jacobs sighed. 'You need an open mind.' He turned and wrote that on the board, too. Alex half expected him to put a star on the 'i' but was disappointed. Jacobs also added confidence, praise, motivation, determination, understanding and a smiley face.

A minute later, Alex found himself forcefully volunteered to demonstrate the first trust exercise. His eyes were blindfolded with a dusty strip of fabric and he was spun harshly three times by Temperance, who he could just imagine with a wicked grin on her face.

Alex was paired up with Diesel, who was to direct him, using words only, to three specific points in the surrounding land. They were to pick up a laminated card at each destination to prove they'd done the task properly. Diesel had been given the duty of directing Alex out of the cafeteria as a demonstration.

'Keep going forward,' drawled Diesel from somewhere behind Alex. Alex, who, as a rule, did not trust strangers, especially ones who had shown aggression towards him, was very wary. He walked slowly, searching with his hands and feet to be sure he was not going to be driven headlong into a brick wall or something of the like.

'Turn right,' drawled Diesel, who was much closer to Alex than he expected. 'The door's shut.' After successfully opening the door and letting the heat wash over him, Alex took a few steps forward, confident now that he knew where he was. Alex opened his mouth to say something when Diesel didn't follow through with any other instructions.

The blindfold was roughly whipped off his head, allowing the sun to sting his eyes. Alex spun to face Diesel, who grabbed him by the elbow. Alex, not one to be pushed around, jerked his arm out of Diesel's hold.

The boys stared at each other determinedly. Alex glared and Diesel sneered. Locked in a battle from dominance of the situation.

'Whatever.' Diesel walked away from Alex, turning as he reached the corner of the building. 'You coming or not?'

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Author's Note:

I'm so sorry that it's taken me ages. I want to finish this story, I truely do! And I know where I want it to go, but I just don't know how to make it get there.

Thanks to everyone who is sticking along for the ride with me.


	13. Chapter 13

If anyone had been watching closely enough, they would have seen two boys crouched in the sparse shade of the midday sun behind the cafeteria block of the encampment known (not to many) as Dark's Academy.

Luckily, however, no one was paying any attention.

Alex peered around the corner as Diesel leant back against the warm brick. 'I reckon we've only got ten minutes.'

Diesel didn't respond. He sat in the corner between the wall and the water tank and shoved his hand into his pocket. He pulled out a small box and a smaller, rectangular object.

Alex looked at Diesel with a hint of surprise. 'How'd you get them in? My bags were searched.' Diesel lit a cigarette and offered it to Alex, who declined.

'Only have five left. There were in my pocket when I got here. They were checking everyone else but I guess they missed me.' Diesel smiled smugly. He breathed out and Alex rolled his eyes.

'So, what do you know?' asked Diesel.

'About what?' asked Alex. He knew stuff, but didn't know where to start. Or how much he could say. He had a pretty strong feeling that Wolf wouldn't appreciate Alex blabbing all their information.

Diesel waved a hand at the world. 'About this. About everything.' He shook his head, stared off into the distance. 'I'm not as dumb as I look, Alex.' He took another drag of the cigarette. Alex noted that Diesel had used his most friendly tone.

'I know there's something...weird, going on,' started Alex. His stared ahead at the flimsy wire fence that surrounded the compound. He wondered why they bothered when there was not gate fro the road, just a gap for the few cars that came in or out.

'The fence couldn't hold us in if it tried. Everything looks too new. Walter is security, but he's not even trying to keep us secure. The bloody SAS shows up. It just doesn't make sense. Any of it!' Alex put a bit of frustration into the ground by kicking out at a rock.

Diesel nodded. 'Temperance isn't the only one who has been here before. I was here two years ago. There was never a block out to the east, the kitchens weren't so new, Jacobs, Walter and Franks were never here. There have been some big changes. I'm itching to know all of them.

'Nick and Zack have gone nuts. They look like they've seen a ghost. They don't join in on the conversations in our room. They just sit together in the corner or lie down. It's as if they're not even there. I don't know if Rex has changed, because no one really new the bloke and we still don't.' Diesel shrugged.

'So what do we do?' asked Alex after a brief burst of silence.

Diesel took his time to respond. 'Let's think about it carefully. The last thing I need is to go getting my nose stuck in to something that could turn around and kick me up the butt.'

'I know how you feel,' sighed Alex.

'So – we're in an 'academy'. Reasons: unknown or undisclosed.' Diesel spoke as if he were describing an adventure movie. The fake mystery was thick in his voice but there was no doubt that he was totally serious behind the joke. 'There is a wire fence surrounding us, bar the gaping hole where the vehicles pass. Five buildings – one stinking of ambiguity. The secretive Walter guards the East Block with his life. Jacobs nurtures the misunderstood but endearing students. Franks battles with his homosexuality-' Alex snorted '- and an SAS team battles the hot sun during an unidentified mission. Two guys of unquestionable superiority and attractiveness struggle to make sense of it all.'

Alex let out a quiet laugh. 'That just about sums it up.'

Diesel sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy black hair. 'C'mon, let's get back. I'm done with thinking.' He threw his cigarette at the ground and kicked some dirt over it. He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked back to the cafeteria as if nothing had happened, his 'cool' act reappearing.

----

Fortunately, no one had noticed Alex and Diesel disappear. Even better, Diesel was able to steal the three laminated cards that he and Alex were supposed to collect throughout the exercise from Heck, who was very preoccupied with avoiding Temperance, whom he had somehow walked into a ditch. Alex didn't envy him.


End file.
